


The Perfect Moment

by iwazilla



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Modern AU, Petruo, these nerds will be the death of me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-21
Updated: 2016-05-21
Packaged: 2018-06-09 17:31:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6916729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwazilla/pseuds/iwazilla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On their anniversary, Auruo has something special planned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Perfect Moment

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cellorocket](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cellorocket/gifts).



> For the wonderful Cello <3 happy birthday lovely!
> 
> Wil and Martin were borrowed, with permission, from Cello's amazing fic The Sunlight Girl - it is one of my all time favourites and you must give it a read if you haven't already! It's absolutely stunning.

“Auruo, we’ve been over it a hundred times already. You haven’t forgotten anything.”

Rather than listening to his housemate, Auruo ran a hand through his hair in irritation, glancing over the picnic basket and backpack on the coffee table.

“I just wanna make sure. It has to be perfect y’know?”

Martin placed a hand reassuringly on his arm.

“It will be. Besides, this is Petra – she’s hardly one to fuss if you forget the strawberries.”

Auruo laughed nervously. Some part of him knew what Martin was saying was true; Petra never cared too much about the small details. She appreciated them, absolutely, but she didn’t _need_ them – she’d be happy if he turned up in sweatpants with a bunch of crappy movies.

Still, today was different. Today was important, and _everything_ had to go to plan.

“Just one more check?”

Martin sighed although he looked at Auruo sympathetically, giving him a soft smile.

“Just one more.”

\---

After turning the bags inside out and repacking, checking that every single item was in place, Martin wished Auruo luck as he waved him out the door.

"Don’t forget to call me afterwards!”

Weaving his way through the late afternoon traffic, knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel, Auruo felt a sense of detachment; he was almost hyperaware, his mind racing with thoughts, and yet at the same time felt as if nothing was quite real. If it wasn’t for the nervous squirming in the pit of his stomach, he would have thought he was dreaming instead of actually driving on this warm day to pick up his girlfriend.

Thankfully the roads weren’t too busy and he made it to his destination in twenty minutes. There was even a parking space directly in front of Petra’s house – a blessing on most days.

Stepping out of the car, he smoothed over his shirt in an attempt to iron out any creases that had formed as he’d driven over. A young woman walked by, toddler in hand, smiling at him as her child babbled away. He smiled back politely. Petra lived in a lovely neighbourhood; everyone was so friendly and approachable, which he remembered had reassured his girlfriend to no end when she had initially moved here. He’d been miles away, working abroad as part of a graduate scheme, and while she had fallen in love with the neighbourhood almost immediately for its looks – particularly the colourful blossom trees that lined the streets – she had been more than apprehensive about the people. She had not been so lucky in the past with neighbours and thus the idea of living alone for the first month before her housemate could move in had terrified her.

These neighbours had been very kind to her though, welcoming her to her new home and offering help almost as soon as she’d pulled into the driveway. Their generosity had quashed her worries immediately, and both she and Auruo had been grateful for it.

Feeling somehow encouraged by the stranger, Auruo made his way to the front door and knocked loudly. He took a deep breath to calm himself, expecting to be blown away as usual when Petra opened the door.

He needn’t have worried however, as the door was answered by Petra’s lively housemate and best friend – Wil. She raised an eyebrow as she glanced over Auruo, smirking.

“My my Bossard, don’t you scrub up good eh! Didn’t think you had it in you!”

Auruo frowned, narrowing his eyes slightly at her. “You gonna let me in or what?”

She huffed dramatically, although she did move to one side to allow him through. “Hello to you too.”

He made his way to the other end of the room, standing awkwardly by the sliding doors which led into the back garden. The bottom floor was essentially an open space, bright and airy, with the kitchen separated from the rest of the room by tall black countertops. A dining table was situated next to it, decorated with flowers and a small, glass ornament. Near the back door was the lounge area; two long, squashy couches arranged in an L shape, one facing the wall mounted flat screen and the other facing the doors.

“Where’s Petra?”

Wil threw herself onto one of the couches, legs extended across both cushions as she leaned back against the arm and picked up her xbox controller.

“Probably changing her dress for the fifth time or something.”

“Seriously?”

Wil shrugged, focusing on the TV as she unpaused her game and began running through the level. “You’re not the only one who gets nervous for these dates you know.”

“Who says I get nervous?!”

“Me, since I have to put up with your stressing about it for at least a month beforehand.”

“It ain’t that bad!”

“It is s– oh _son of a bitch_!”

Wil glared at her game, watching as her character plummeted mid-jump and hit the ground, causing the level to restart at the beginning. She sighed in irritation, moving her character more carefully through the various obstacles in their way.

“Anyway, you are the most stressed all of the fuckin’ time and I’ve no idea how Martin puts up with you. I’d have throttled you in your sleep by now.”

Auruo huffed. “It’s not that bad.”

Wil simply raised an eyebrow in response, fixated on the screen. Auruo watched as she jumped across rooftops and took down enemies until her character fell to their death again, this time after jumping off of a crane. Wil groaned, sinking further into the sofa.

“I hate this game…”

She carried on and Auruo continued to watch her, occasionally fidgeting and glancing over towards the staircase. Eventually Wil paused the game and looked at him.

“Y’know, you shifting around is really distracting.”

“I’m nowhere near you!”

“I can see you out the corner of my eye! You’re putting me off!”

“Nah, maybe you just suck at gaming.”

“ _I_ suck at gaming?! I’m not the one who always comes last in Mario Kart!”

“That’s because you’re a fuckin’ cheat, always putting me off!”

“Yeah right! You’re just a sore loser, always full of excuses.”

“What, like somebody on the other side of the room distracting them from getting through a level?”

Wil stuck her tongue out at him and he responded in kind, arms crossed over his chest.

“What on earth are you two yelling about this time?”

Auruo looked across the room towards the new voice and, just like he knew it would, the sight of Petra took his breath away.

She wore a simple white dress, cinched at the waist and patterned with light pink flowers. Her hair was lightly curled and tumbled loose over her shoulders, make up light with a slight shimmer to her cheeks and across her collarbones – exposed where the straps of the dress lay off her shoulders. It was nothing over the top, Petra never was, but Auruo swore he had never seen anything so beautiful.

Even Wil was taken aback, craning her neck over the sofa to look. She recovered quickly though, turning her attention back to Auruo and watching as he tried desperately to compliment his girlfriend.

“I, you, Petra, you’re so—”

“I think Brains over here wants you to know that you look smoking hot.”

Auruo scowled at Wil, who of course smirked in response, but Petra laughed.

“Thank you, Wil. I’m sorry I took such a long time Auruo! Have you been waiting a long time for me?”

“Oh! Nah, its fine, not long at all.”

"He had me to keep him company anyway,” Wil exclaimed, jumping up from the sofa and heading towards the kitchen. “We all know I’m his favourite person.”

Auruo snorted, shaking his head and made his way to Petra, heart hammering in his chest as she beamed up at him. He took both her hands in his own, running a thumb across her knuckles.

“You… you really do look beautiful y’know.” He could feel the flush creeping up his face, knew he was tomato red from the base of his neck to the tip of his ears, but he didn’t care. She blushed, her cheeks turning deep pink.

“Auruo…”

She leant up to kiss him and he met her lips, soft and sweet. He moved a hand to the small of her back, bringing her closer, and she moved hers to grasp his forearm.

“Ah, young love. How disgusting.”

Petra smiled into the kiss before pulling away, much to Auruo’s dismay. He turned around, one hand still holding Petra’s, and saw Wil watching them as she leant against the kitchen countertop, wearing her trademark shit-eating grin.

“Take care of my Petra would you Bossard? She’s precious, you gotta handle her with care.”

Petra bristled. “I’m not a china doll!”

Wil only grinned more widely. “And don’t let me catch you two at it on the sofa again later. If I do, I’m sending a snapchat to everyone you know _and_ saving it to my story.”

“Wil!”

She blew them a kiss, hopping over the counter back towards her game, and Petra sighed, shaking her head. Auruo grinned in spite of himself – he grumbled a ton about Wil and her teasing, but he secretly enjoyed their banter.

“Shall we go?”

He turned back towards Petra. “Yeah babe. Let’s go.”

\---

As Auruo drove them through the suburbs, headed towards the park at the edge of the city, they chatted happily – or rather, Petra chattered away as he asked about her day. He loved hearing her talk, especially when she was excited about something. Today she had plenty to tell him about the new opportunities coming up for her at work and though he’d heard a fair bit of it before, he was happy still simply to listen to her and the passion in her voice.

“You’re very quiet today Auruo. Are you feeling alright?”

The sudden question took him by surprise and he glanced over towards her.

“I just like hearing you talk, that's all.”

His admission caused him to turn a deep red for the second time that evening and she blinked before smiling brightly, placing a hand gently on his thigh.

“You’re so sweet sometimes.”

“Only sometimes, huh?”

She stuck her tongue out at him and he grinned, their previous conversation descending quickly into playful banter.

He pulled into the parking lot next to the park ten minutes later, neatly reversing into a space next to the entrance. Petra unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car, admiring his parking.

“I think this is the best you’ve ever done Auruo. Normally it’s at least a little over one of the lines.”

Auruo walked around to the boot of the car, removing the picnic basket, blanket and his backpack.

“Have I ever told you you’re a fussy nag?”

She grinned at him.

They made their way through the park, Auruo holding onto all the necessary bags. Petra had tried her best to let him share the load but he insisted on carrying all of it.

“What’s in the rucksack?” She asked curiously, eyeing it up as they neared their picnic spot.

“Nothin’ you need to worry about,” he’d replied quickly. “It’s for later.”

He spread the blanket neatly across the grass when they reached their spot – a quieter section of the park partway up a hill, giving them a fantastic view of the city. A large oak tree loomed over them, leaves rustling in the breeze.

“It’s so beautiful here,” Petra said quietly as she sat on the blanket, smoothing her skirt across her legs. “I’d forgotten.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty decent I guess.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, watching as he rooted through the basket to place food out between them. “It’s decent?”

“Well it is!”

“You have such a way with words Auruo.”

“Oi nag, you’re the one who told me I’m only sweet sometimes – remember?”

She laughed in response, reaching for the drink he handed out to her.

“Alright,” she conceded. “You’ve got me there.”

\---

Once they finished with their food, they lay down together and watched the colour of the sky deepen, from reds and pinks to purple and eventually dark, illuminated with stars in spite of their close proximity to the city lights. Laughter drifted through the park from further down the hill where a small orchestra was preparing to play, a crowd gathering in front of the stage.

“Auruo?”

“Hmm?”

“This is nice.”

Auruo shifted slightly beneath her. His nerves were creeping up on him.

“Yeah. It is.”

For another fifteen minutes they continued to lie together, Auruo running a hand along Petra’s back as they gazed up at the stars.

Finally, the orchestra began their show.

 _This is it_.

“Oi, get up a sec. I have something for you.”

Petra sat up, stretching, and watched Auruo curiously as he reached for his backpack. He unzipped it carefully, heart hammering in his chest.

He pulled out a large, black leather-bound book. He watched Petra as he handed it over to her, the surprise in her face as she ran a hand across the front cover.

“What’s this?”

“I, well I, um…” _Come on Auruo. You can do this._ “It’s a bunch of cute shit from our dates and stuff. Y’know, since it’s four years and all.”

“Auruo! That’s so romantic.”

Auruo scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Well, Martin helped me come up with the idea…”

“But you did it.” Petra beamed up at him, leaning in to kiss him on the cheek before settling with her back against him, book propped in her lap. “I love it already.”

He watched her as she began to read through the book, laughing and joking with him about the old memories each page brought up. Auruo had saved practically everything he’d ever done with her – plane tickets from holidays, cinema tickets, letters. Even crappy quality polaroids of them in some stupid pose had made their way in there, of course alongside proper photographs of them together, through college and then their relationship.

On the final page sat a small envelope with something inside. ‘Read before opening’ it said. Petra looked at Auruo inquisitively but he simply nodded towards the page, hoping his expression didn’t convey how anxious he felt.

 

_Petra,_

_You know I’ve always been better at writing things down than saying them out loud. I want to ask you something properly, but first let me tell you this;_

_The day we spent in your tiny dorm room, talking and kissing – confessing, to everything – is the happiest day of my life._

_The years we’ve spent together are the best I’ve had._

_You are a smart, beautiful, strong woman and you constantly amaze me._

_Petra, you are the light of my life. I am the luckiest man alive._

“Oh my god.”

Shaking a little, she pulled the envelope away from the page and opened it. Inside sat a white gold ring, three diamonds set in the centre – the middle one larger than the two either side of it.

“Petra Ral.”

She turned to face Auruo, who was bent on one knee, looking at her more seriously than he had ever looked at her in their entire lives.

“Will you marr—”

She leapt into his arms before he could finish.

“Yes!!! Yes, yes, yes, yes!!!!!”

Auruo, relief coursing through his body, held her closer, laughing.

He really was the luckiest man alive.


End file.
